Napped leno fabric



A ril 25, 1961 J. H. ROGERS 2,981,297

NAPPED LENO FABRIC Filed March 14, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet l mwmu' mmu J'OHN HOW]! R0 R0 66775 ATTORNEYS April 1961 J. H. ROGERS. 2,981,297

NAPPED LENO FABRIC Filed March 14, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 2' Ft? 9 INVENTOR.

JOHN I/GWARD R06ER$ ATTOHNfiKS NAPPED LEN O FABRIC John Howard Rogers, Black Mountain, NC, assignor to Beacon Manufacturing Company, a corporation of Delaware Filed Mar. 14, 1958, Ser. No. 721,524

2 Claims. (Cl. 139-391) This invention relates generally to napped fabrics such as napped yard goods, and more particularly to a napped woven fabric of this sort in which a leno weave is uniquely employed for holding the filling ends or picks thereof effectively at cut edge portions of. the fabric running generally parallel to the filling.

Woven fabrics are generally characterized by a disadvantageous tendency of the filling to ravel or be pulled loose easily at cut edge portions thereof, and in napped woven fabrics, which are normally rather coarse or heavy, this tendency is especially pronounced and has made it extremely difiicult to form satisfactorily secure seams fillingwise of such fabrics. For this reason knit fabrics have largely replaced woven fabrics in the manufacture of napped fabric garments such as childrens snow suits and sleeping garments and the like, as a knit fabric has an interlocking loop structure that may be seamed securely without any difficulty. However, knit fabrics cannot be napped with the same effectiveness as woven fabrics and have the further disadvantage in garment manufacture of lacking squareness so that they are considerably more difiicult to handle.

According to the present invention a napped woven fabric is provided for use in garment manufacture that eliminates the foregoing difiiculty encountered in seaming, while at the same time making available the superior napped finishes and fabric squareness possible in a woven fabric. This result is obtained in accordance with the present invention by forming the napped woven fabric with a filling that is tightly woven with a warp havingregular pairs thereof arranged in a regular leno pattern, and by which arrangement the warp is disposed to hold the filling effectively for seaming at cut edge portions of the fabric as described in further detail below in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. l is a fragmentary schematic plan view of a napped fabric weave construction embodying the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a pattern chart for the fabric illustrated in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary schematic plan view illustratingv a variation of the Fig. l weave construction;

Fig. 4 is a pattern chart corresponding to Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary schematic plan view of a modi fied napped fabric weave construction embodying the present invention;

Fig. 6 is a pattern chart corresponding to Fig. 5;

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary schematic plan view of a variation of the Fig. 5 weave construction;

Fig. 8 is a pattern chart corresponding to Fig. 7; and

- Fig. 9 is a schematic representation of the warp shedding arrangement employed according to the invention with a related symbol chart providing a key for the pattern charts shown in Figs. 2, 4, 6 and 8.

Napped woven fabric yardgoods of the type provided by the present invention are characterized by a relatively. coarse soft twisted filling woven with a relatively fine hard twisted warp, and the filling normally must be tightly 2,981,291 Patented Apr. 25, 1961 Ice wovenwith the Warp in order ultimately to obtain a satisfactorily napped fabric. A representative construction for a fabric of this sort might employ a 24s cotton-warp in a sley of 2.460 woven through a 2/14 reed with a cored acetate filling ranging from a count of 2.10 at about 19 to 23 picks per inch to a count of 3.25 at about 27 to 29 picks per inch. An acetate filling is commonly used in napped fabrics of this sort that are intended for garment manufacture because of the non-inflammable character of such a filling, and because a coarse acetate filling is not strong enough by itself it is commonly used in cored form. However, the foregoing construction is only representative, as noted above, and the advantages of the present invention could be obtained with other comparable constructions as described further below.

Referring now in detail to the drawings, Figs. 1 and 2 illustrate a weave construction in which a repeating pattern of warp ends A, B, C, and D is woven with a filling that repeats on eight picks as numbered 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8, the warp being manipulated in leno pairs A, B and C, D. It is possible according tov the present invention to leno only spaced pairs of warp ends while weaving the intermediate warp plain, although if this is done the leno warp pairs should comprise about half of the total warp, as it becomes difficult to weave the fabric sufiiciently tight when much more than half the warp is lenoed, and the lenoed warp effect on the filling is disadvantageously lessened if the leno warp pairs constitute much less than half the warp.

Preferably all of the warp is lenoed alternately in staggered relation with respect to the filling as in Fig. 1 weave construction in which it will be seen that one warp end B or D of the adjacent warp pairs A, B and C, D alternately rises over two successive filling picks while crossing between these picks under the other warp end A or C of the respective pairs to form a leno tiedown. The result of this arrangement is to leno only alternate warp pairs at any given filling pick, which makes it possible still to weave the filling tightly with the warp despite the leno crossings, and in addition balances the weave advantageously from the standpoint of appearance and makes it unnecessary to provide for any differential Warp tensioning as must usually be done in weaving a leno pattern.

A further characteristic of the Fig. l weave construction that should be noted is that all of the warp ends remain always at one face of the filling or fabric (i.e., at the back face, Fig. 1 being arranged as a plan view of the top face), except where a particular warp end rises for a leno crossing in the manner noted above. This warp arrangement allows exceptionally advantageous single or top face napping of the resulting fabric in cases Where only one face is to be fully napped and the other face simply scratch napped, as is often done in forming napped fabrics for garment manufacture.

Figs. 3 and 4 illustrate a variation of the Fig. 1 weave construction to obtain a generally comparable fabric suitable for full napping at both faces, the warp ends A, B', C' and D in this case being shed so that the leno crossing arrangement is more or less reversed and a substantially even distribution of the warp at the back and top faces of the resulting fabric is obtained so that both faces may be napped with equal case. That is, the warp ends of each pair are always disposed at opposite faces of the filling or fabric and at each leno crossing the respective warp ends change faces for two successive filling picks and one warp end B or D crosses its paired end A or C between these picks.

The Fig. 1 and Fig. 3 weave constructions both allow filling cannot be pulled from beneath these crossings,

rather than breaking off thereat, upon napping. That is, the leno crossings allow a filling fiber to be pulled therefrom and thereby mapped to stand at the fullest possible napped height, rather than being broken off'at some shorter height by the grip of the leno crossing.

Figs. and 6 represent a modification of the Fig. 1 weave construction in which a tighter leno'crossing arrangement is employed, which lessens the degree of napping possible for the reason noted above, but which offers the advantage of providing a more secure hold on the filling for seaming of the fabric at cut edge portions thereof running generally parallel to the filling, and thereby illustrating the manner in which this feature of the present invention can be emphasized in'instances where it is of particular importance. The Fig. 5 weave construction is comparable to the Fig. 1 weave construction in that warp ends a, b, c and d are shed to run predominantly at the back face of the fabric and thereby provide for more effective single faced napping of the fabric; whereas Figs. 7 and 8 illustrate an arrangement comparable to the Fig. 3 weave construction in which warp ends a, b, c and d are balanced between both faces of the fabric to provide for double faced napping. These Fig. 5 and Fig. 7 weave constructions both difier from the comparable weave constructions of Figs. land 3 in that the warp end pairs (a, b and c, d in Fig. 5; or a, b and c, d in Fig. 7) after crossing at each leno point are recrossed before reaching the next leno point and therefore always cross in the same direction at each leno point.

Fig. 9 illustrates the warp shedding arrangement employed in forming the above describedweave constructions of the present invention, and further includes a related symbol chart on which the pattern charts of Figs. 2, 4, 6 and 8 are based. The warp ends illustrated in Fig. 9 are designated A, B, C and D in correspondence with Figs. 1 and 2, simply as a matter of convenient choice, and the same illustrated relation holds true for the warp ends A, B, C' and D of Figs. 3 and 4; a, b, c and a of Figs. 5 and 6; and a, b', c, and d of Figs. 7 and 8.

The illustrated warp ends A, B, C and D in Fig. 9 are shown arranged with each end under the control of a leno or cross weaving harness of the type disclosed in US. Patent No. 2,788,021, the respective harnesses comprising pairs of right and left lifting heddles 10 and 12, 14 and 16, 18 and 20, or 22 and 24, together with a doup heddle or needle, 26, 28, 30 or 32 for each pair of lifting heddles. Each lifting heddle, as described and illustrated further in the above noted prior patent, is carried by a separate vertically shiftable heddle frame (not shown), while the doup heddles have the general form of a yoke with a warp end controlling eye 34, 36, 38 or 40 at the throat thereof and legs which extend through slots (not shown) in the respective lifting heddles of each pair and which are connected at their extending ends with a spring bias (not shown) directed away from the doup eye, all as is conventional in such harness arrangements.

The particular arrangement illustrated in Fig. 9 employs what is known as a double doup mounting" in which successive sets of the leno'harness elements are inverted with respect to each other; that is, the doupheddle 26 controlling the warp end A, and the related lifting heddles 10 and 12, are arranged so that the controlled warp end A may be shed to a Down" position by the action of either lifting heddle from a normal Up" position corresponding to a neutral position of the doup heddle 26 at which neither lifting heddle 10 or 12 is actuated, while the normal position of the controlled warp end B is Down and the doup heddle 28 and lifting heddles 14 and 16 therefor are oppositely arranged for shedding to an Up position, and corresponding arrange- 4 ments are repeated in the same order for-the warp ends C and D.

It should also be noted that the paired relation of the warp ends A and B, and C and D is reflected in Fig. 9 by the illustration of warp end A as extending through the eye 34 of the doup heddle 26 therefor and between the related lifting heddles 10 and 12, while the paired warp end B is also represented as extending between these lift ing heddles 10 and 12, but outside the doup heddle 26, and both warp ends C and D of the other pair are shown passing outside all of the harness elements at this point. The relative disposition of the paired warp end A and B is exactly reversed at the next set of harness elements, the warp end B here being extended through the doup eye 36, and the warp end A being extended outside the doup heddle 28 but between the related lifting heddles 14 and 16, while the pair of warp ends C and D again pass outside and free of the harness elements. At the next set of harness elements, the warp end C is arranged for control at the eye 38 of doup heddle 30in relation to its paired warp end D (just as warp A is in relation to warp B), and the doup heddle 32 of the final harness set has the warp end D extended through the eye 40 thereof for control in relation to warp end C (in the same manner as warp B is in relation to warp A), while both of the Warp ends A and B run free of these last two sets of harness elements. i

By virtue of the above described arrangement it is possible to shed the respective warp pairs in the various relations indicated by the symbol chart included in Fig. 9, so that these pairs can be woven plain, cross shedfor leno weaving, or maintained at one face or the other of the filling, at will. In the Fig. 9 symbol chart, each warp end A, B, C and D is charted in double vertical rows indicated R (for right) and L (for left) in order to reflect the fact that actuation of the doup heddle in any harness set by one or the other of the lifting heddles thereof will manipulate the controlled warp to the right or left of the paired warp, which is the type of manipulating relation that makes it possible to effect leno crossings. The position, as to hand, of a particular warp at a given shed relation illustrated in the symbol chart is indicated by a circle. Thus, for warp end A, the symbol chart indicates by the relation of the squares at the top of the double vertical rows therefor that warp end A is down at the left of warp end B, which corresponds to the harness illustration in Fig. 9, lifting heddle 10 being to the right of the warp involved'and lifting heddle 12 to the left. For warp end B, it must be remembered that the harness set is in reverse or inverted relation, so that the right and left lifting heddles 14 and 16 are oppositely arranged, and this reversal is reflected in the symbol chart, warp end B being indicated as up at the left of warp end A. 2 Similarly, warp ends A and B can be manipulated so that they are respectively disposed down at the right and.up at the right in relation to the other, or warp end A can assume a neutral up position and warp end B a neutral down position, or both can be disposed together at neutral up or down position. The only restriction is against moving warp end B (or C) to a neutral up position while warp end A (or D)- is at its neutral down position, as the result 'of this manipulation would be to cut or break the warp end A (or C). The pair of warp end C and D bear the same relation and may be manipulated in the same way as the warp end pair A and B. t

The Fig. 2, 4, 6 and 8 pattern charts are based on the Fig. 9 symbol chart and may be read in relation thereto. Aside from the leno or cross weaving harness required, the weave constructions of the present invention can be formed on looms of'conventional form, and these constructions can be run at good speeds without encountering any speeial production ditficulties from differential warp tensions or the like.

The resulting woven fabric has a substantially reduced tendency to ravel at the filling and can be seamed fillingwise to exceptional advantage due to the lenoed warp.

The present invention has been described in detail above for purposes of illustration only and is not intended to be limited by this description or otherwise except as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A napped fabric comprising a relatively coarse soft twisted filling and pairs of hard twisted warp ends substantially finer than said filling, said filling being regularly and tightly woven with said pairs of warp ends and substantially disposed at the face of the fabric, said pairs of warp ends being woven with said filling, with the warp ends alternately lenoed warpwise in a leno pattern that is staggered fillingwise, both ends of each warp pair remaining always at one face of said filling except at two successive filling picks in each repeating pattern where one warp end of said pair rises over said two successive filling picks while crossing under the other warp end of said pair therebetween.

2. A napped fabric as defined in claim land further characterized in that said first mentioned warp endrecrosses said other Warp end before reaching the first filling pick at the next leno crossing.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 16,870 Carleton Mar. 24, 1857 1,139,467 Cole May 11, 1915 1,842,692 Sandeman Jan. 26, 1932 2,021,993 Gutlon Nov. 26, 1935 2,359,591 Staines Oct. 3, 1944 FOREIGN PATENTS 534,492 Belgium June 28, 1955 

